Tesco profit overstatement prompted ‘tears and resignations’

Carl Rogberg, 50, Christopher Bush, 51, and John Scouler, 49, are on trial over a £250m accounting scandal in which it emerged that Tesco had overinflated its profits and had to issue a correction to the stock market in September 2014. In August 2014, Amit Soni, a senior accountant at Tesco, was so concerned about the practice that he told Mr Bush, who was managing director of Tesco UK, that the hole in the accounts could reach £600m by the end of the second half, the trial heard. A number of Tesco staff resigned by August 2014 because they "Felt so compromised" - including one senior manager, Richard Parsons, who complained "It has broken me". Mr Parsons, a project manager who had worked at Tesco since 2003, became concerned in 2014 about the "Goings on" at the retailer, which he did not consider good accounting practice and turned down a promotion to become a commercial director, Sasha Wass, QC, prosecuting claimed to the court. In September 2014 Tesco had to put out a corrected statement to the stock market detailing the £250m hole in its accounts.